Toady Hawk on Warpcast

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As someone very active in the @base and Clanker ecosystems, I wanted to say a few words about today’s drama. First of all, as many have said before, this team is extremely cracked. @dish is an amazing dev and an even better person. @btayengco, @m00npapi.eth, @fffflood, @lobstermindset.eth — legends, all. The fact that they’ve trauma-bonded and pulled together to move forward in this moment when the temptation could be to cut and run is, in my view, very long-term bullish. There will obviously be uncertainty and volatility, as with anything of this nature, but I don’t doubt the team will continue to ship and support the ecosystem they’ve helped build. [cont…]

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Now, as far as thoughts on Proxy himself (Alex) — tbh, I’m still kind of processing everything, so this is more of a stream of consciousness dump than anything, but; What he did in 2022 was obviously very wrong. He knows it. Everyone now knows it. It hurt a lot of people. Levered gambling is a hell of a drug, and unfortunately, he let it ruin his life and reputation — and the lives of many others at the same time. Brutal. Stepping away from Clanker was the only move here obviously, given the amount of trust broken and the amount of capital involved. This at least gives the team a fighting chance to recover trust and momentum. [cont…]

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That said, people are complex and flawed beings. Alex was always extremely kind to me in all our interactions. Most people who “knew” him would probably say the same if they’re being honest. He wasn’t perfect, but he was fiercely loyal to those building in his ecosystem. In rebuilding his new anon persona, he made a great many friends in the Farcaster ecosystem, helped a lot of builders, and brought real positivity to the space. We do ourselves a disservice if we pretend that wasn’t the case. It also bears acknowledging that building a protocol like Clanker — especially as a cloutless anon — is no small feat. Alex’s skills at yapping, strategy, and ecosystem support were pretty much unmatched. It’s a huge part of why Clanker has succeeded, full stop. [cont…]

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In January, Alex even gave @zerorightsmedia a $10,000 grant from his own personal token supply to help boost our content and increase our distribution — something that helped us immensely during a period of transition and bootstrapping. You might say, “Oh, well that’s why you’re defending him,” but if you do, you’re just missing the point. I’m only sharing the facts and reiterating that humans are complicated, multifaceted creatures — rarely the one-dimensional villains dreamt up by crypto Twitter. There are very few protocols willing to open their pockets and support earnest builders and content creators in this space. Alex did this often, and with intention. [cont…]

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I guess I understand his impetus to return to the industry after his previous disgraced exit (and therefore why he felt he needed to remain anonymous.) But at the same time, I do wonder: what was his endgame? He had to have known this day was coming — his Icarus moment. He was interacting in close quarters with the very team he had previously defrauded, even joining audio spaces with them. The hubris was real. This day was inevitable. Maybe things just got too big, too fast, and he didn’t know how to get off the ride without hurting everyone involved? I’m not sure. What I do know is that everyone involved IS hurt. And while I’m sure Alex feels badly, it’s likely little consolation. At the very least, he should have leveled with Dish, the Clanker team, and people like @jessepollak who put their necks out to support him, and given them a fighting chance to try and better navigate this situation. [cont…]

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